SK·NHN Invested Bio Company Investment PEF Formation

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[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Jeong-su] The newly established venture capital (VC) firm Muir Woods Ventures and Hi Investment & Securities are forming a fund to invest in promising bio ventures. The fund will target companies such as Wellmarker Bio, the first bio venture from Seoul Asan Medical Center, Hummingbird Biosciences, which gained fame with SK㈜ as a contributor, and Rescue BioSciences, invested in by NHN Investment.

According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 18th, Muir Woods is establishing a 10 billion KRW scale 'Bio Healthcare New Technology Investment Association.' The portfolio will focus on next-generation bio healthcare growth sectors such as immuno-oncology, cell therapy, and microbiome fields, aiming to realize profits through initial public offerings (IPO) and equity sales. Hi Investment & Securities will participate as a co-general partner (GP).

Muir Woods is a newly founded VC established in February this year by CEO Ryu Jeong-ah, former head of Abelino Lab Global IR. In April, it opened an office in Silicon Valley, USA, to discover investment opportunities, and in May, it formed the 'Nice Mobility Scale-up New Technology Investment Association' to invest in mobility companies.

With the funds from the newly formed fund, Muir Woods plans to invest in four domestic and international bio companies. The targets include new drug development companies Wellmarker Bio, Hummingbird, Rescue BioSciences, and medical equipment and diagnostic product company Curiox Biosciences.

Wellmarker Bio is the first bio venture company from Asan Medical Center, founded by Professor Jin Dong-hoon of Seoul Asan Medical Center. It is developing colorectal cancer treatments and lung cancer antibody drugs based on biomarkers. Its main pipeline, 'WM-S1,' has completed preclinical trials and is preparing to submit Investigational New Drug (IND) applications for Phase 1 clinical trials in the US and Australia. Major investors include the Korea Development Bank, Mirae Asset Venture Investment, Korea Development Bank, and HB Investment.

Muir Woods plans to invest 3 billion KRW in convertible redeemable preferred shares (RCPS) issued by Wellmarker Bio, aiming to exit through a technology special listing next year. NH Investment & Securities has been selected as the lead underwriter. The expected market capitalization upon listing is around 500 billion KRW.

Hummingbird is a Singapore-based AI-driven antibody therapeutic development company. It became known domestically after SK Group’s holding company SK㈜ invested. Major shareholders include Mirae Asset Venture Investment, HB Investment, foreign investors Heritas Capital and Sees Capital. It plans to pursue listing on KOSDAQ or Nasdaq in 2022. Muir Woods will invest 2.2 billion KRW in convertible preferred shares (CPS).

Muir Woods also plans to invest 2.5 billion KRW each in RCPS of Curiox Biosciences, a cell analysis automation equipment company, and Rescue BioSciences, a microbiome new drug developer. Their goals are technology special listing in 2022 and KOSDAQ listing in 2023, respectively. IMM Investment, KB Investment, and Quad Investment are investors in Curiox Biosciences, while NHN Investment, Shinhan Financial Investment, and KB Securities are investors in Rescue BioSciences.

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